Irish pubs are dying: VFI chief calls for emergency government action

'A pub is more than just a business. It performs a vitally important public function as a hub of social and cultural life'

Over 300 publicans attended the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland AGM in Mount Wolseley, Carlow, this week, voicing their concerns for the trade. Picture: Conor McCabe

The chief executive of the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland (VFI) Pat Crotty has called for targeted supports for rural pubs which are facing an "existential threat" with the numbers of pub closures now getting even faster.

Mr Crotty told the organisation's AGM at Mount Wolesley in Carlow that the situation facing pubs in rural Ireland has hit a crisis point, with the rate of closure every year now averaging 128. More than 2,500 pubs have closed since 2005.